Stop Wasting Food! Recipes For Food Scraps to Cut Your Grocery Bill

Do you toss out broccoli stalks, onion skins, and potato peels? You’re wasting money! A new book says we throw away $25 of every $100 we spend on groceries. Ouch!

Now you can turn your trash into edible treasure with “From Garbage to Gourmet,” by blogger Carrie Issac (who you may remember makes the awesome Grocery University).

Today and tomorrow only, “From Garbage to Gourmet” is 50% off!

The sale price of “From Garbage to Gourmet,” is $4.99 from Wednesday at 12 a.m. to Thursday at 11:59 p.m. MST ONLY.The flash sale celebrates the launch of the PDF ebook, which you can read on your computer (Mac or PC), iPad, Kindle, or Nook.

Reading my advance copy, I was inspired by Issac’s upbeat attitude and practical suggestions – like keeping small portions of frozen leftovers in the same section of your freezer. Why didn’t I think of that?

The images were gorgeous and the recipes simple. I love how easy she makes it to refer back to specific foods.

Ingredient index so you can quickly find ways to use a particular item

More than 100 strategies to keep food from spoiling

Via Shuttersock

Some of the recipes in the book:

Asian Broccoli Slaw

Poor Man’s Apple Cider

Corn Cob Chowder

Chocolate Cheesecake Bites

Magic Hot Fudge Cake

Creamy Avocado Bacon Dressing

Chocolate Dessert Wontons

There is a Kindle version on Amazon, but it doesn’t have the printable recipes and lacks all the pretty pictures. Apparently, Kindle is not image-friendly. Starting Friday, the price goes up to $7.99 for the rest of March. Come April, the book will be $9.99.

I vow to do more with the food waste that I take for granted! And just think of how much less I’ll have to spend at the grocery store if I stop throwing out food?!

Do you toss out scraps? This book is for you!

This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for making blogging my full time job when I’m not taking care of Lucy!

Comments

When I realized how much I spend on vegetable broth (which always has more sodium than I want), I stopped tossing those throw-away parts of veggies when I was preparing food, and began to use them to make my own stock. It saved me lots of $$$, and was far tastier than what came out of a can or box. I can even turn the veggie broth into chicken or beef broth by adding a bit of low-sodium granules that come in a resealable jar. Waste eliminated (reused/repurposed), costs cut down. What could be better? And I always turn the bones, etc., from a store-bought roasted chicken into stock for a yummy soup. Perfect for the cooler weather, but good any time of the year.

@EllieD I make chicken stock too! I just hate paying it – $1.50 for a 14 oz can sometimes! When a whole bird seems pricey (especially when we buy organic) I’ve got to remind myself how much money I’m saving by making my own broth. I toss in a few carrots, one onion, all the bones, skin, and carcass, any other soft veggies I have. Celery is not something we usually have on hand, but in my last batch I added three mushrooms that were too dried up to eat but perfect for broth!

I pre-make PB& J sandwiches for my kids Saturday nights for my kids lunches for the week, and place them in the freezer. I cut the crust off the 15-20 sandwiches I make. I save all the crusts, and bread ends that the kids don’t like in a freezer bag. On Sunday morning I make baked French toast or bread pudding from all the scraps. Its a big hit in my house. You cannot tell the bread pudding, or baked French toast is from bread crust.

@Marie Ok, now I’ve got to get a french toast recipe for bread crusts! We love making a special breakfast on Saturday or Sunday, and usually do pancakes, sometimes egg scramble. I’d love to have another recipe to rotate in!

@Amanda Genius! Lucy is too young to need sandwiches, but I’ll remember this for when she’s older. I save bread ends or pieces that are about to go bad in a container in my freezer. Then I’ll rough chop them, drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and spread on a cookie sheet or tray. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes and I have delicious croutons!!!!

I have a recipe for baked french toast that is delicious but very rich. What do you put in yours?

@BB ~ I always have celery, carrots, onions, kale, parsley, etc. in the veggie crisper drawer. When things get soft, or when I’m trimming them to use in a recipe, I put all the odds and ends (stems from cilantro, parsley) into a pot for broth/stock. I don’t add salt or pepper at this point, as I like to control the sodium. Sometimes I add a bay leaf or two, but not other herbs or spices. Those go into the pot when I’ve decided what I’m going to prepare for meals. I have more flexibility that way, and can also add chicken or beef granules (reduced sodium) if needed.

@EllieD You have way more fresh veggies on hand than I ever do. Since Lucy came around, I’ve fallen in love with frozen veggies. Already cleaned and chopped!!!! It’s the best thing since sliced bread. Since I make dinner almost every night (that’s a whole ‘nother topic) I’m wont to make something very quick. I also leave spices, salt, and pepper out of my homemade chicken broth. I freeze them in my cupcake trays so they are a nice 1/2 portion. I use them to make rice and add them veggies instead of water. Gives everything a nice flavor with very little salt!

I also have more free time than you do, so I can take my own sweet time to get creative in the kitchen. I do have a couple of bags of frozen veggies for those now and again lazy days, but much prefer the fresh. Once Lucy gets bigger and can start eating raw veggies, you’ll probably change you mind a bit. When Brian was little I made friends with all the produce managers at the markets, as Brian loved munching on raw veggies (carrots, green beans, peas in the pod, etc.), which delighted the produce people. Brian usually got lucky when it came to free samples of munchies! To this day, he prefers raw to cooked veggies, and doesn’t have much of a sweet tooth!

@EllieD I never thought of keeping a bag just for frozen vegetable scraps. That is a great idea! I already have a container for bread crusts, why not veggie leftovers? Your son Brian sounds like a natural vegetable eater! Veggies are not Lucy’s favorite, but she will eat them. I love raw veggies, especially green beans and green peppers, but unlike Brian I have a HUGE sweet tooth!

Brian didn’t like the baby food veggies, except for sweet potatoes, but once he was on solid food, it didn’t take long for him to enjoy raw veggies. He usually hung around when I was preparing them, and especially like shelling peas and eating his share of them! And he HATED peas when he was a baby. Give Lucy time, as she may make a complete turn-around before you know it!